Kavitha Maloth: Up for any challenge

Her formative years helped shape Kavitha Maloth as a politician. She credits her hostel life for where she is today. Hailing from the Lambada community, the 38-year-old Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) leader was elected to the Lok Sabha from Mahabubabad, Telangana. She trounced her nearest opponent by about 1.5 lakh votes, becoming the first Lambada woman from the state to enter Parliament.

“From my school days till I completed college, I was always a boarding student,” said Kavitha. “I was far from home and spent a lot of time with friends. I used to be a part of some group or the other, and whenever anyone approached me with a problem, I would help them. I think I could connect well with people from an early age and solve their issues. This helped me once I entered public life as a politician.”

Kavitha is known to be down-to-earth, lively and easygoing. At 29, she won the 2009 assembly elections from Mahabubabad on a Congress ticket. Her father, Redya Naik, is a six-time MLA and also served as a state minister under Y.S. Rajasekhara Reddy. “I became an MLA in 2009 purely because of the goodwill that my father enjoys,” she admitted. However, things took an unexpected turn when she lost in 2014. According to her, the last five years were a great learning experience, and made her stronger.

“When I became an MLA the first time, I used to believe people blindly. I helped many whom I thought were my own. But after I lost, none of them stood by me. It was hurtful and this made me realise who were genuine and who were not. It is an irony that those who are with me today are the ones I never actually helped,” she said.

Kavitha and her father joined the TRS in late 2014, and she was entrusted with overseeing the municipal elections in various towns. She passed with flying colours as the party candidates under her won. Despite this, she was denied a ticket in the assembly elections last December. Then, this time the TRS made a surprise move by allotting her a Lok Sabha ticket.

“I think my strength is my hard work. Apart from that, I easily mingle with people. Despite not being an MLA, my voters realised how accessible and affectionate I was. They more than made it up by overwhelmingly voting for me in the Parliament elections,” she said.

Kavitha is rooted in the Lambada culture and lifestyle and is fluent in the language. She has appealed to members of her community to retain traditional practices, and says she is very fond of the Lambada attire. Now that she is an MP, she wants to ensure that Lambada festivals are not ignored. “Lambada women celebrate Teej festival on a grand scale. With lot of youngsters migrating to bigger cities, the scale of this festival has come down. I want to revive the festival and show it to people outside,” she said. She plans to request the state government to declare a holiday and also support the celebrations.

Though she is upbeat on becoming an MP, she is also nervous. “Since I will be entering Parliament for the first time, that tension and excitement will be there. I am sure I will be comfortable once the sessions start. I am looking forward to it and I hope I get a chance to speak at some point,” she said.

In her free time, Kavitha spends time with family and loves to go shopping with her childhood friend Haritha. “Otherwise, I just watch the latest movies,” she said.

Though the gruelling elections are over, Kavitha is far from relieved. The local body elections had kept her on her toes. “I cannot afford to rest. Politics is a never-ending job and I am up for any challenge. I believe in being positive and serving people with honesty. I am happy as long as my people are happy,” she said.

Kavitha Maloth

Age 39

Party: Telangana Rashtra Samithi

Constituency: Mahabubabad (ST), Telangana

Vote share: 46.98%

Education: BSc computer science